There is thread on another site about organic certification of maple syrup. Not being a beekeeper , actually very allergic to bee stings , this got me thinking. How in the world can you have honey organic certified ? Can the bees bring back nasty stuff from Mrs Jones flower garden that has been drenched with bug killing , weed eliminating chemicals ?

That could be a possibility. I would think the first concern was what the boxes where made out of. I am sure they couldn't be some crudy boxes with any old paint slapped on them.

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honey to be certified organic, manufacturers have to meet a set of organic standards and conditions during the honey production (set by a organic agriculture certification body), which include source of the nectar, honey bees foraging area, bees management, honey extracting process, transportation, processing temperature, and packaging materials. Honey that claims to be organic has to be tested to guarantee that it does not contain any residues of pesticides or environmental pollutants. Farming of organic honey is also supposed to meet rigorous and extensive monitoring and testing criteria of the certification body, for instance, the documentation of, and consultation with every land user within a five kilometer radius of the organic hives to ensure they are free of chemical residue; regular analysis and testing of honey samples; and hives have to be proven free of non-organic honey, sugar and antibiotics

I guess that the source of nectar is very, very important. Google "Picture of M+M colored honey". The bees were visiting a nearby plant that had remains of M+M outer shells and the resulting honey was all different colors, very pronounced. Of course, the honey did not pass the qualifications for honey to be sold.